Getty The Green Bay Packers could make a trade for a former top draft pick.
The Green Bay Packers have plenty of talent on their defense, but a potential trade proposal with a familiar team could give the team such much-needed depth at a key position going forward.
Alex Ballentine with Bleacher Report gave their list of three trade targets the Packers could could make a run at after Week 2. The list included safety Chuck Clark, and unsurprisingly a wide receiver in Kendrick Bourne, but the biggest name on the list was a former top draft pick. Ballentine had the top trade target for the Packers being current Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Clelin Ferrell.
“The edge-rushers play a premium position and the Packers happen to have limited depth,” Ballentine said. “So, it would make sense for the Packers to explore their options on the trade market. Clelin Ferrell has struggled to live up to expectations in Las Vegas…It would be a worthwhile project to take on if he can develop into a player who can give Gary and Smith needed rest to make it through a 17-game season.”
Preston Smith and Rashan Gary are a dominant one-two duo at edge rusher, but for a role that requires some rotation in a game, the Packers and general manager Brian Gutekunst need to try and add another veteran at the position.
Who is Clelin Ferrell?
College football fans will remember Ferrell’s name from his playing days at Clemson. While he hasn’t had the same kind of impact at the NFL level, he’s still young enough that there’s real potential for him to be a rotational edge rusher.
Coming out of Benedictine High School in Virginia, Ferrell was a 4-star recruit and one of the top 100 players in the 2015 recruiting class. Despite offers from tons of top schools including Ohio State, Florida, and LSU, Ferrell decided to go play for Dabo Swinney at the Tigers.
Ferrell was forced to redshirt after an injury as a true freshman, but came back in 2016 and had a phenomenal final three seasons with the program. Not only was Ferrell a two-time national champion, he was also a two-time All-American and the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2018. He finished his college career with 50.5 tackles for loss, 27 sacks, and five forced fumbles.
The Raiders fell in love with Ferrell, taking him with the fourth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft to the shock of fans around the league. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to live up to those high expectations as a top draft pick, only racking up eight sacks over his first three seasons.
Ferrell has gotten stuck on the depth chart behind Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones, making him an expendable player. He’s only 25, however, and a team like the Packers could try to trade for him and give him a fresh start with a new team.
Who Are Green Bay’s Backup Edge Rushers?
Gary and Smith may be stars at the position, but their backups at edge rusher have yet to prove themselves.
Jonathan Garvin was a seventh-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and has served as a backup at edge after making the 53-man roster as a rookie. He has played sparingly for the Packers, however, picking up only 1.5 sacks in 26 games.
Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare was a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft out of South Carolina. He has already seen the field despite being a Day 3 rookie, so Packers fans are hopeful that he can develop into a serviceable player.
Neither backup edge rusher has blown fans away yet, so some additional depth at the position is something Gutekunst should consider adding, whether it’s in free agency or before the trade deadline.